Ian Price

From Roanoke County Fire EMS: Update 4:30.: Catawba Valley Drive (USR 311) between Absalom Smith Road and McAphee’s Knob Trail parking lot is now open after it was closed due to a brush fire in the area.

From Roanoke County Fire EMS: Update 9:00 p.m.: Many of the crews from Roanoke County Fire and Rescue have been cleared for the evening. The U.S. Forest Service will be handling most of the firefighting duties overnight. Roanoke County will be providing 7 people, a firetruck and an ambulance for the overnight shift. Catawba Valley Drive will remain closed until approximately 11 p.m. tonight and motorists are urged to use caution in that area. Roanoke County Fire and Rescue would like to thank the Roanoke Moose Lodge, located on Catawba Valley Drive for their generosity in letting us use their parking lot and building as a staging area for crews working this fire.

From Roanoke County Fire EMS: Update 7:10 p.m.: This fire is being handled by a unified command of Roanoke County Fire and Rescue, Virginia Department of Forestry, and the U.S. Forest Service. Most of this fire is on federal land and the U.S. Forest Service estimates the size at 325 acres. There are approximately 80 total personnel fighting this fire. There were some structures threatened in the early stages of the fire but all of those were protected and there are currently no structures threatened. There are currently 2 helicopters operating with air water drops on this fire. There have been no injuries. Catawba Valley Drive remains closed at Absalom Smith Road and the Appalachian trail from the parking lot at the top of Catawba Mountain out McAfee’s Knob remains closed as well. The U.S. Forest Service plans to have crews on this fire overnight and into the morning. Roanoke County Fire and Rescue will assist them with medical support and some firefighting support as well.

(Roanoke County, VA—April 29, 2018) Roanoke County Fire and Rescue responded at about 3:40 p.m. on Sunday, April 29, 2018 to Catawba Valley Road for the report of several small wildland fires along the side of the road heading up the mountain towards McAfee’s Knob. At the time of this release, the fire is moving rapidly due to the windy conditions. Route 311, Catawba Valley Drive is shut down to all vehicle traffic and we are asking that motorists avoid that area. Also, the Appalachian Trail in the area of McAfee’s Knob is being evacuated and we are asking for hikers to avoid this area. Along with nearly every station from Roanoke County, we are also receiving assistance from Salem, Elliston, Virginia Department of Forestry and the U.S. Forest Service. Bulldozers and a helicopter are being used to try and stop the fire. There is no estimate at this time on the size of the fire or on how much has been contained. Updates will be provided as we have more information. ###

NORFOLK, Va. (AP) — Federal authorities in Virginia have charged a South Carolina woman with possession of the deadly poison ricin and having a gun with an obliterated serial number.

Sixty-two-year-old Debra Siers-Hill of Ladson, South Carolina, made an initial court appearance Friday and is due back in court Tuesday for a hearing to determine whether she should remain in custody pending trial.

An indictment alleges that Siers-Hill had the poison and gun in March 2016, one month after her boyfriend, 67-year-old Frederick Brooks, died in Virginia Beach.

Brooks’ family has filed several lawsuits alleging that Siers-Hill poisoned him, but she has never been charged in his death.

Media outlets have reported that Siers-Hill’s first husband died in 1993 in South Carolina from what a coroner determined was suicide by drinking antifreeze.

From Montgomery County Jail

ROANOKE, Va. (AP) — A former student expelled from Virginia Tech after being arrested on a gun charge is suing the school and police officials in federal court.

Yunsong Zhao filed a complaint Thursday saying police violated his rights in falsely arresting him, and school officials violated his due process rights in dismissing him.

Police claim they saw Zhao at a local range shooting a semi-automatic rifle with a 30-round magazine. Virginia prohibits non-citizens from having guns with magazines holding more than 20 rounds.

But police never found a 30-round magazine in searching Zhao’s room and vehicles. A judge has expressed doubt about a conviction.

Zhao says campus police have repeatedly harassed him because he’s Asian and likes guns. The shooter who killed 32 people at Virginia Tech in 2007 also was Asian.

WFIR SportsRICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia State Police won’t release video of a traffic stop involving a Washington Redskins wide receiver who said a state trooper asked if he was a gang member or drug dealer.

Paul Richardson Jr.’s tweets about the questions he was asked during a Tuesday traffic stop prompted an internal review by state police.

Richardson just signed a $40 million five-year contract with the Redskins and was driving a new Mercedes when pulled over. He is African-American.

The department said Friday that it was declining a public records request by The Associated Press for video taken from the trooper’s in-car camera. Spokeswoman Corinne Geller said the department has the discretion to release the video under state law but has chosen not to.